So Watchmen is the biggest movie in the land, or at least the most-hyped. Coincidentally, the noir superhero flick comes out when national, if not international, attention is focused on the drama between singer Rihanna and her (allegedly, cough cough) abusive boyfriend, singer Chris Brown. With violence towards women in the headlines, Watchmen may, and probably should, be taken to task for the scene in which one of the characters, the boorish rightwinger the Comedian, tosses around and punches his fellow superhero team-mate, Silk Spectre. It’s an ugly moment which itself feels like a slap in the face, and seems to be in there more because of something the moviemakers have to prove than for the audience’s understanding of the story. (If I recall from reading it 20 years ago, the comic that the movie is based on was not nearly as graphic, although I could be mistaken.) There is a little too much glee on the part of the filmmakers in the scene for my liking, like “look how grim and tough we are.”

That said, we shouldn’t throw out the babe with the bathwater. And in keeping with that sentiment, I’ve come up with a list of the top 10 relationships in comics (comic-strips and graphic novels included)—not necessarily the healthiest, just some of my personal faves.